Originally Submitted by Rob Thompson, Executive Director of the Covenant with North Carolina's Children
HHS Budget Report
At today's HHS Appropriations meeting, the Department provided legislators with a list of potential cuts to meet anticipated spending reduction requirements. To be clear, the cuts in this list are brutal and represent a large-scale retreat from the investments that we have made in our children and families.
The Department presented three different scenarios - one would cut $144 million, the next $150 million, and the last $154 million. These three numbers are supposed to represent 3%, 5%, and 7% reduction scenarios, but the dollar amounts don't align with those percentages.
In fact, the HHS sub-committee has been instructed to cut 5%, which equals $216 million. This means that an additional $60 million in HHS cuts will be necessary on top of what was presented today.
Below, I've pulled out some key proposed cuts from the presentation today.You can also follow this link to see the entire cut list. If you have concerns about any of your specific programs, please let me know.
Division of Central Administration
Housing Finance Assistance Program - this program provides housing to people with extremely low-incomes who have disabilities. $561,000 non-recurring cut.
Community Health Grants - this cut means that community health centers entering the third year of their contract will not automatically get that money, but will have to submit another grant. In simpler terms, HHS is proposing to eliminate the third year of current contracts. $300,000 recurring cut.
Division of Child Development
Child Care Subsidy - I'm not sure how this one works; seems like the state is robbing Peter (the counties) to pay Paul, but here is what the Department says. DCD would reduce county services support allocations from 5% to 4%; funds from this reduction would free up about $3.277 million in state appropriations from the subsidy services budget. An additional $1.125 million of actual cuts would be implemented to realize the full reduction amount of $4.4 million. In all, the Department projects that 249 fewer slots would be available.
Smart Start - This one is simple. Reduce the Smart Start allocation by either 3%, 5%, or 7%. The corresponding money amount for each of those scenarios is $5.8 million, $9.7 million, and $13.5 million.
Office of Education Services
Reduce Residential Services by One Night / Week - this would reduce the number of nights a week that a student could stay at the school from four to five. This has already been happening during the current fiscal year due to the Gov's withholding of 5% of the approved budget. $561,558 recurring cut.
Division of Public Health
NC Universal Vaccines for Children Initiative - this program would eliminate all funds for our state vaccine program and replace them a "Childhood Immunization Account" that would be supposedly funded by private insurance providers. I don't believe the insurance industry has agreed to this yet. $6.4 million.
Division of Social Services
Child Support Enforcement Consolidation and Reduction - the Department is proposing the elimination of 33 positions (20 filled and 13 vacant). Reductions would also be found in operating accounts. $1.58 recurring cut.
Funding Authorization to Counties - $358,529 cut to Foster Care/Adoption IV-E; $959,998 cut to Child Protective Services-State; and, $1.072 million cut to Child Protective Services IV-E. These cuts have already been in effect during the current fiscal year following the Governor's required 5% reduction reserve for the Division (though these line item cuts are more like 16%).
Child Advocacy Centers - Eliminate all state funding for child advocacy centers. $375,000 recurring cut.
NCREACH - NCREACH is a scholarship program for children in foster care. This proposed cut would eliminate the entire state appropriation and replace it with Escheat funds. This means that the Division will probably not promote this program among foster youth. $3.168 million recurring cut.
Permanency Planning - this reduction would transfer 25% of the federal participation requirement to the counties. The problem with this is that the counties have no money, which means that they might not meet the match, which then means that federal money would not be drawn down. $682,512 recurring cut.
School-based Child and Family Teams - 12 counties currently receive state money to help fund school-based child and family team facilitators. This item would eliminate that state funding. $420,804 recurring cut. (similar cut in Division of MH/DD/SA budget below)
Division of Medical Assistance
Children under 21 were exempted from all cuts to optional Medicaid services, so I'm not going to outline them here. For a full description of the Medicaid cuts, see the attached document.
Division of Services for the Blind, Deaf, and Hard of Hearing
Merge Special Assistance for the Blind Program with Special Assistance Program. $287,807 recurring cut.
Division of MH/DD/SA
School-based Child and Family Teams - this cut takes care of the other state-funding that was removed from the Social Services budget. $438,611
Counties Pay Portion of LME Systems Management Cost - this item creates a tiered payment system, which requires counties with the smallest LMEs to pay the highest percentage of the non-federal management costs. This is a pretty heavy-handed attempt to get LMEs large enough to participate in the 1915 waiver. $10.305 million recurring cut.
Division of State Operated Healthcare Facilities
Close Whitaker School - turn Whitaker into a PRTF, which would then be Medicaid eligible. $969,233 recurring cut.
Close Wright School - $1.272 million recurring cut.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Friday, April 9, 2010
Covenant Membership News
Provided by Stacey Massengill, NCSPA Legislative and Public Policy Committee Member
Originally Submitted by Rob Thompson, Executive Director of the Covenant with North Carolina's Children
Hi folks,
I wanted to pass along this information about an upcoming training opportunity. See below for details.
1915 b/c Medicaid Waiver Training
by Open Minds
Tuesday, April 20, 2010 from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm
Village Inn Hotel, Golf & Conference Center, Clemmons, NC
We invite you to attend a unique learning opportunity with Dr. John Talbot, Executive Vice President and Senior Associate from Open Minds to discover the potential impact of the 1915 b/c Medicaid Waiver in North Carolina. Dr. Talbot is a national expert and state consultant on Federal Medicaid waivers and served as the President of the Colorado Care Management, a network of agencies that received national recognition for demonstrated measurable superior clinical outcomes under a Federal waiver.
Attendees will learn about
1) examples of highly effective 1915 b/c waivers in other states;
2) challenges other states have experienced in implementing the 1915 b/c waivers;
3) the potential impact of the waiver across the mental health, juvenile justice and social service systems in NC and
4) how key stakeholders can prepare for this change.
Registration is open to members and non-members of CFSA-NC. Seating is limited so early registration is encouraged.
To register, please complete a separate form for each registrant which can be found here.
This training is open to members and non-members of CFSA-NC so please share with others as appropriate.
Hope you can make it. Enjoy your weekend!
Thanks,
Rob Thompson
Originally Submitted by Rob Thompson, Executive Director of the Covenant with North Carolina's Children
Hi folks,
I wanted to pass along this information about an upcoming training opportunity. See below for details.
1915 b/c Medicaid Waiver Training
by Open Minds
Tuesday, April 20, 2010 from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm
Village Inn Hotel, Golf & Conference Center, Clemmons, NC
We invite you to attend a unique learning opportunity with Dr. John Talbot, Executive Vice President and Senior Associate from Open Minds to discover the potential impact of the 1915 b/c Medicaid Waiver in North Carolina. Dr. Talbot is a national expert and state consultant on Federal Medicaid waivers and served as the President of the Colorado Care Management, a network of agencies that received national recognition for demonstrated measurable superior clinical outcomes under a Federal waiver.
Attendees will learn about
1) examples of highly effective 1915 b/c waivers in other states;
2) challenges other states have experienced in implementing the 1915 b/c waivers;
3) the potential impact of the waiver across the mental health, juvenile justice and social service systems in NC and
4) how key stakeholders can prepare for this change.
Registration is open to members and non-members of CFSA-NC. Seating is limited so early registration is encouraged.
To register, please complete a separate form for each registrant which can be found here.
This training is open to members and non-members of CFSA-NC so please share with others as appropriate.
Hope you can make it. Enjoy your weekend!
Thanks,
Rob Thompson
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Covenant with NC's Children News
Originally Submitted by Rob Thompson, Executive Director of the Covenant with North Carolina's Children
The Census Makes Sense for Us
The 10-question Census form arrives in mailboxes in mid-March. Encouraging people to fill out and return the form will have a big effect on North Carolina, including the level of government funding we receive for amultitude of programs serving children. More than one third of thehouseholds in NC did not return the form in the 2000 Census, which led to an undercount and lose of our fair share of funds in some areas. "Hard tocount" populations, according to the Census, include people with low incomes or education levels, renters, and immigrants.
The Covenant With NC's Children is teaming up with other nonprofits todistribute informational cards about the importance of filling out theCensus. More than 500,000 cards have already gone out to churches, community centers, barber/beauty shops, food banks, counseling programs, service agencies, etc. You can get a supply of the FREE cards to distribute through your programs or other means to people in your community. Maybe you could ask a couple of churches to include them as bulletin inserts during the first half of March.
Here is what the card looks like, front and back (8.5 x 3.6 inches):
http://www.democracy-nc.org/downloads/CensusCardEnglish.pdf
Cards are also available in Spanish. To receive quantities of these freecards (from 100 to 10,000), please send your name, full mailing address andfull street address (for UPS), your phone number and email address, and thequantity of cards desired, to Bob Hall, Democracy North Carolina athttps://foghorn.appcomm.net:2096/horde/imp/message.php?index=1# or 919-489-1931.
(PLEASE SHARE THIS OFFER WITH OTHERS.)
Thank you!
Rob Thompson
Executive Director
The Census Makes Sense for Us
The 10-question Census form arrives in mailboxes in mid-March. Encouraging people to fill out and return the form will have a big effect on North Carolina, including the level of government funding we receive for amultitude of programs serving children. More than one third of thehouseholds in NC did not return the form in the 2000 Census, which led to an undercount and lose of our fair share of funds in some areas. "Hard tocount" populations, according to the Census, include people with low incomes or education levels, renters, and immigrants.
The Covenant With NC's Children is teaming up with other nonprofits todistribute informational cards about the importance of filling out theCensus. More than 500,000 cards have already gone out to churches, community centers, barber/beauty shops, food banks, counseling programs, service agencies, etc. You can get a supply of the FREE cards to distribute through your programs or other means to people in your community. Maybe you could ask a couple of churches to include them as bulletin inserts during the first half of March.
Here is what the card looks like, front and back (8.5 x 3.6 inches):
http://www.democracy-nc.org/downloads/CensusCardEnglish.pdf
Cards are also available in Spanish. To receive quantities of these freecards (from 100 to 10,000), please send your name, full mailing address andfull street address (for UPS), your phone number and email address, and thequantity of cards desired, to Bob Hall, Democracy North Carolina athttps://foghorn.appcomm.net:2096/horde/imp/message.php?index=1# or 919-489-1931.
(PLEASE SHARE THIS OFFER WITH OTHERS.)
Thank you!
Rob Thompson
Executive Director
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Covenant Membership News
Provided by Stacey Massengill, NCSPA Legislative and Public Policy Committee MemberOriginally Submitted by Rob Thompson, Executive Director of the Covenant with North Carolina's Children
CALL CONGRESS: VOTE YES FOR H.R. 4247, PREVENTING HARMFUL RESTRAINT & SECLUSION IN SCHOOLS BILL!
Bill moving to House Floor; Call on Monday or Tuesday. Please forward.This week, the entire House of Representatives will vote on legislation (H.R. 4247) that will stop schools from restraining children, confining them in seclusion rooms, and using aversive interventions to harm them. Call your Congressional Representative on Monday or Tuesday and ask them to VOTE YES to H.R. 4247. Also tell them to vote against any amendments that will weaken the bill. Dial 202-224-3121 (TTY 202-225-1904) and ask for your Representative's office. (See instructions below.) Get your friends and family to call, too!
WHY VOTE FOR H.R. 4247?
H.R. 4247) is a bill that will stop schools from restraining children, confining them in seclusion rooms, and using aversive interventions to harm them. A Government Accountability Office study found hundreds of cases of alleged abuse and death from restraint and seclusion in public and private schools over the last two decades. Examples included a 7 year old who died after being held face down for hours by school staff; 5 year olds allegedly being tied to chairs with bungee cords and duct tape by their teacher and suffering broken arms and bloody noses; and a 13 year old who hanged himself in a seclusion room after prolonged confinement. The majority of students in the GAO study had disabilities.
H.R. 4247 will create a minimum level of protection for schoolchildren that all states must meet or exceed. Currently, almost half of all states have no laws or laws with little protection for children. H.R. 4247 will prohibit restraint and locked seclusion of schoolchildren unless there is an imminent risk of physical injury that less restrictive interventions would not stop. It will forbid using these abusive techniques as punishment and behavior modification, and to deal with educational disruption and the like. Positive behavioral interventions are the appropriate ways to deal with disruptive behavior. H.R. 4247 is designed to encourage schools to use positive interventions and de-escalation, instead of abusive tactics. The bill prohibits schools from using mechanical and chemical restraints or restraints the impede breathing. H.R. 4247 prohibits including restraint and seclusion in IEPs as a planned intervention. The bill bans aversives that harm health and safety, such as using electric shock and denying children food and water or forcing foul substances into their mouths and eyes.
H.R. 4247 will protect all students, whether in private or public school. Many children with disabilities are placed in private schools by school districts and they should not lose vital health and safety protections. Other parents choose to send their children to private school for religious or other reasons; they should not be forced to give up protections from abuse.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR CALLING CONGRESS ON MONDAY OR TUESDAY:
Call and ask your Representative to VOTE FOR H.R. 4247, to prevent harmful restraint and seclusion in schools. Also, tell your Representative to vote against any amendments that would weaken the bill. Tell them to pass the bill intact. The full House of Representatives will vote on the bill this week, so call on Monday or Tuesday.
Telephone/TTY: Call your Congressional Representative and Senators at 202-224-3121 (TTY 202-225-1904). This is the switchboard, so you will need to know your Representative's name. When you are connected, ask for the aide who handles education or disability. If you get voicemail, please leave a message. If you cannot reach this aide, tell the person answering the phone that you want the Congressional Representative to vote for the bill. Again, tell them your city or town so they know they represent you. So, take two minutes and begin your day with a call to Congress!
You can also find local numbers and direct dial numbers on your Representative's webpage at http://www.house.gov/Email: If you can call, it is extremely important to do so. But if you cannot (due to a disability, inability to use the phone during working hours, etc.), send an email on Monday. Go to http://www.house.gov/writerep for the House of Representatives. Calls have a much greater impact. Since Congress is voting on the bill this week, please call on Monday or Tuesday if you can!
Find Out Who Your Congressional Representative is: If you do not know who your Congressional Representative is, go to http://www.house.gov/ and put your zip code into the box in the upper left corner. (You usually only need your five digit zip code.) If you have already contacted Congress about this bill, please do it again. This time, you are asking him/her to vote with the entire House of Representatives to support H.R. 4247.
For more information, see http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2009/12/preventing-harmful-restraint-a.shtmland http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2010/02/myth-vs-fact-preventing-harmfu.shtml
PLEASE FORWARD AND SHARE THIS ALERT BROADLY!!!
CALL CONGRESS: VOTE YES FOR H.R. 4247, PREVENTING HARMFUL RESTRAINT & SECLUSION IN SCHOOLS BILL!
Bill moving to House Floor; Call on Monday or Tuesday. Please forward.This week, the entire House of Representatives will vote on legislation (H.R. 4247) that will stop schools from restraining children, confining them in seclusion rooms, and using aversive interventions to harm them. Call your Congressional Representative on Monday or Tuesday and ask them to VOTE YES to H.R. 4247. Also tell them to vote against any amendments that will weaken the bill. Dial 202-224-3121 (TTY 202-225-1904) and ask for your Representative's office. (See instructions below.) Get your friends and family to call, too!
WHY VOTE FOR H.R. 4247?
H.R. 4247) is a bill that will stop schools from restraining children, confining them in seclusion rooms, and using aversive interventions to harm them. A Government Accountability Office study found hundreds of cases of alleged abuse and death from restraint and seclusion in public and private schools over the last two decades. Examples included a 7 year old who died after being held face down for hours by school staff; 5 year olds allegedly being tied to chairs with bungee cords and duct tape by their teacher and suffering broken arms and bloody noses; and a 13 year old who hanged himself in a seclusion room after prolonged confinement. The majority of students in the GAO study had disabilities.
H.R. 4247 will create a minimum level of protection for schoolchildren that all states must meet or exceed. Currently, almost half of all states have no laws or laws with little protection for children. H.R. 4247 will prohibit restraint and locked seclusion of schoolchildren unless there is an imminent risk of physical injury that less restrictive interventions would not stop. It will forbid using these abusive techniques as punishment and behavior modification, and to deal with educational disruption and the like. Positive behavioral interventions are the appropriate ways to deal with disruptive behavior. H.R. 4247 is designed to encourage schools to use positive interventions and de-escalation, instead of abusive tactics. The bill prohibits schools from using mechanical and chemical restraints or restraints the impede breathing. H.R. 4247 prohibits including restraint and seclusion in IEPs as a planned intervention. The bill bans aversives that harm health and safety, such as using electric shock and denying children food and water or forcing foul substances into their mouths and eyes.
H.R. 4247 will protect all students, whether in private or public school. Many children with disabilities are placed in private schools by school districts and they should not lose vital health and safety protections. Other parents choose to send their children to private school for religious or other reasons; they should not be forced to give up protections from abuse.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR CALLING CONGRESS ON MONDAY OR TUESDAY:
Call and ask your Representative to VOTE FOR H.R. 4247, to prevent harmful restraint and seclusion in schools. Also, tell your Representative to vote against any amendments that would weaken the bill. Tell them to pass the bill intact. The full House of Representatives will vote on the bill this week, so call on Monday or Tuesday.
Telephone/TTY: Call your Congressional Representative and Senators at 202-224-3121 (TTY 202-225-1904). This is the switchboard, so you will need to know your Representative's name. When you are connected, ask for the aide who handles education or disability. If you get voicemail, please leave a message. If you cannot reach this aide, tell the person answering the phone that you want the Congressional Representative to vote for the bill. Again, tell them your city or town so they know they represent you. So, take two minutes and begin your day with a call to Congress!
You can also find local numbers and direct dial numbers on your Representative's webpage at http://www.house.gov/Email: If you can call, it is extremely important to do so. But if you cannot (due to a disability, inability to use the phone during working hours, etc.), send an email on Monday. Go to http://www.house.gov/writerep for the House of Representatives. Calls have a much greater impact. Since Congress is voting on the bill this week, please call on Monday or Tuesday if you can!
Find Out Who Your Congressional Representative is: If you do not know who your Congressional Representative is, go to http://www.house.gov/ and put your zip code into the box in the upper left corner. (You usually only need your five digit zip code.) If you have already contacted Congress about this bill, please do it again. This time, you are asking him/her to vote with the entire House of Representatives to support H.R. 4247.
For more information, see http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2009/12/preventing-harmful-restraint-a.shtmland http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2010/02/myth-vs-fact-preventing-harmfu.shtml
PLEASE FORWARD AND SHARE THIS ALERT BROADLY!!!
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Division 16, APA Announcement
Dear NC School Psychology colleagues & students,
Trainers of School Psychologists yesterday received this exciting announcement from Bonnie Nastasi, the President of Division 16:
The Division of School Psychology was able to successfully negotiate the following language, passed by the APA's Council of Representatives (CoR) today 2/20/2010. This language acknowledges that State Education Agencies credential and title practitioners who work in the schools (that may or may not hold a doctoral degree) and acknowledges that State Boards of Psychology credentials practitioners for independent practice (where a doctoral degree is required).
Nothing in this act shall be construed to prevent (cite relevant state education authority or statutory provisions) from credentialing individuals to provide school psychological services in those settings that are under the purview of the state education agency. Such individuals shall be restricted in their practice and the use of the title so conferred, which must include the word "school", to employment within those settings. This provision is not intended to restrict the activities of licensed psychologists.
We are proud of the leadership of our CoR representatives, Cindy Carlson, Frank Worrell, Beth Doll and MLA Task Force Liaisons, Deborah Tharinger, Randy Kamphaus and Tammy Hughes, as well as the support from Steve DeMers from ASPPB on behalf of the school psychology community.
Sincerely,
Bonnie K. Nastasi, PhDPresident, Division 16, APA
Trainers of School Psychologists yesterday received this exciting announcement from Bonnie Nastasi, the President of Division 16:
The Division of School Psychology was able to successfully negotiate the following language, passed by the APA's Council of Representatives (CoR) today 2/20/2010. This language acknowledges that State Education Agencies credential and title practitioners who work in the schools (that may or may not hold a doctoral degree) and acknowledges that State Boards of Psychology credentials practitioners for independent practice (where a doctoral degree is required).
Nothing in this act shall be construed to prevent (cite relevant state education authority or statutory provisions) from credentialing individuals to provide school psychological services in those settings that are under the purview of the state education agency. Such individuals shall be restricted in their practice and the use of the title so conferred, which must include the word "school", to employment within those settings. This provision is not intended to restrict the activities of licensed psychologists.
We are proud of the leadership of our CoR representatives, Cindy Carlson, Frank Worrell, Beth Doll and MLA Task Force Liaisons, Deborah Tharinger, Randy Kamphaus and Tammy Hughes, as well as the support from Steve DeMers from ASPPB on behalf of the school psychology community.
Sincerely,
Bonnie K. Nastasi, PhDPresident, Division 16, APA
Friday, February 5, 2010
Call to Ban Prone Restraints in NC Schools
Provided by Stacey Massengill, NCSPA Legislative and Public Policy Committee Member
Originally Submitted by Rob Thompson, Executive Director of the Covenant with North Carolina's Children
Attached is a letter from Disability Rights calling on Congress and NC's school districts to ban the use of prone restraints on students. See below for more context on this important issue.
If you are interested in signing on (Letter of Support) in support, please contact Kristine Sullivan at (919) 856-2195 or kristine.sullivan@disabilityrightsnc.org by February 12th.
Best, Rob
ISSUE BACKGROUND
In the past year, dangerous seclusion and restraint practices in public schools have become issues of national concern. In an upcoming report, Disability Rights NC (DRNC) is calling upon each of North Carolina's school systems to adopt a ban on prone restraint and implement Positive Behavior Supports. In the report, DRNC also includes information on important federal legislation that would ban the use of any restraint position (including prone restraint) that interferes with a student's breathing. The bill, the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4247 and S. 2860), was drafted in collaboration with both student advocacy groups and associations of educators.
Disability Rights NC supports this federal legislation, which would impose stricter standards than what currently exists under NC law. Greater protections are particularly important for students with disabilities in North Carolina, who, as DRNC has discovered, are subjected to the routine and frequent use of prone restraint.
DRNC would appreciate your support in calling for a ban on prone restraint in North Carolina's public schools. Attached please find a letter from Vicki Smith, DRNC Executive Director, and a draft letter that will be sent to all of the NC school districts with a copy of our report. Let's stop the use of prone restraint before a North Carolina student dies.
If your organization would like to sign on in support, please contact Kristine Sullivan at (919) 856-2195 or kristine.sullivan@disabilityrightsnc.org by February 12th. Please contact DRNC if you have any questions, and feel free to share this with other organizations.
Originally Submitted by Rob Thompson, Executive Director of the Covenant with North Carolina's Children
Attached is a letter from Disability Rights calling on Congress and NC's school districts to ban the use of prone restraints on students. See below for more context on this important issue.
If you are interested in signing on (Letter of Support) in support, please contact Kristine Sullivan at (919) 856-2195 or kristine.sullivan@disabilityrightsnc.org by February 12th.
Best, Rob
ISSUE BACKGROUND
In the past year, dangerous seclusion and restraint practices in public schools have become issues of national concern. In an upcoming report, Disability Rights NC (DRNC) is calling upon each of North Carolina's school systems to adopt a ban on prone restraint and implement Positive Behavior Supports. In the report, DRNC also includes information on important federal legislation that would ban the use of any restraint position (including prone restraint) that interferes with a student's breathing. The bill, the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4247 and S. 2860), was drafted in collaboration with both student advocacy groups and associations of educators.
Disability Rights NC supports this federal legislation, which would impose stricter standards than what currently exists under NC law. Greater protections are particularly important for students with disabilities in North Carolina, who, as DRNC has discovered, are subjected to the routine and frequent use of prone restraint.
DRNC would appreciate your support in calling for a ban on prone restraint in North Carolina's public schools. Attached please find a letter from Vicki Smith, DRNC Executive Director, and a draft letter that will be sent to all of the NC school districts with a copy of our report. Let's stop the use of prone restraint before a North Carolina student dies.
If your organization would like to sign on in support, please contact Kristine Sullivan at (919) 856-2195 or kristine.sullivan@disabilityrightsnc.org by February 12th. Please contact DRNC if you have any questions, and feel free to share this with other organizations.
Together NC Coalition Meeting Announcement
Provided by Stacey Massengill, NCSPA Legislative and Public Policy Committee Member
Originally Submitted by Rob Thompson, Executive Director of the Covenant with North Carolina's Children
Last year, we came together and formed Together NC to ensure that North Carolina elected officials took a responsible and balanced approach to addressing our economic crisis, and we made a difference - legislators included nearly $1 billion in new revenue in their final budget to sustain vital public programs.
Our current situation demands more coordinated action. With the economy struggling to recover and a tenuous state budget situation, we must come together again.
Join us for a day of conversation, education, skill-building and engagement around the state of the economy and its impact on North Carolina's children, families, and communities.
Together NC Forum: Charting a Path Forward for 2010 and Beyond
Thursday, March 18th
10 AM- 4:30PM
Marbles Kids MuseumRaleigh, NC
The agenda for the day includes:
A coalition meeting to determine a plan of action for Together NC in 2010 and beyond. We will be sending organizations a pre-assessment tool to help us plan for this portion of the day. We ask that all Together NC organizations make an effort to participate in this decision-making process even if you are unable to send a representative to the forum.
A luncheon featuring Dean Baker, a nationally-prominent economist and co-director of CEPR (https://www.cepr.net/), and Jon Shure from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (https://www.cbpp.org/). Dean and Jon will give us an update on the economic outlook for the US, prospects for economic recovery, and the continued impact the recession is having on states' abilities to meet the needs of their residents. The luncheon is part of NC Policy Watch's Crucial Conversation series.
A training on messaging around the economy and budget- both developing a common message for Together NC and helping organizations develop an effective message about your own budget priorities. (Jon Shure is confirmed, Patrick Bressette from Demos has been invited)
The forum is open to all current and prospective members of the Together NC Coalition. Please feel free to invite new organizations to join us for the day.
To RSVP- Email togethernc10@gmail.com with the following information:
Name of your organization
Number of people from your organization you expect to attend with their names and contact information
Whether or not you plan to attend for the full-day or just part of the day. Be sure to indicate whether or not each attendant will be present for lunch.
A more detailed agenda and the pre-assessment survey will be sent out over the next few weeks.
If you have any questions about the forum or Together NC, please contact Rob Thompson (rob@nccovenant.org or 919.866.3280) or Meg Wiehe (meg@ncjustice.org or 919.856.3192).
Directions to Marbles Kids Museum: http://www.marbleskidsmuseum.org/directions
For more information on Together NC: http://www.togethernc.org/
Originally Submitted by Rob Thompson, Executive Director of the Covenant with North Carolina's Children
Last year, we came together and formed Together NC to ensure that North Carolina elected officials took a responsible and balanced approach to addressing our economic crisis, and we made a difference - legislators included nearly $1 billion in new revenue in their final budget to sustain vital public programs.
Our current situation demands more coordinated action. With the economy struggling to recover and a tenuous state budget situation, we must come together again.
Join us for a day of conversation, education, skill-building and engagement around the state of the economy and its impact on North Carolina's children, families, and communities.
Together NC Forum: Charting a Path Forward for 2010 and Beyond
Thursday, March 18th
10 AM- 4:30PM
Marbles Kids MuseumRaleigh, NC
The agenda for the day includes:
A coalition meeting to determine a plan of action for Together NC in 2010 and beyond. We will be sending organizations a pre-assessment tool to help us plan for this portion of the day. We ask that all Together NC organizations make an effort to participate in this decision-making process even if you are unable to send a representative to the forum.
A luncheon featuring Dean Baker, a nationally-prominent economist and co-director of CEPR (https://www.cepr.net/), and Jon Shure from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (https://www.cbpp.org/). Dean and Jon will give us an update on the economic outlook for the US, prospects for economic recovery, and the continued impact the recession is having on states' abilities to meet the needs of their residents. The luncheon is part of NC Policy Watch's Crucial Conversation series.
A training on messaging around the economy and budget- both developing a common message for Together NC and helping organizations develop an effective message about your own budget priorities. (Jon Shure is confirmed, Patrick Bressette from Demos has been invited)
The forum is open to all current and prospective members of the Together NC Coalition. Please feel free to invite new organizations to join us for the day.
To RSVP- Email togethernc10@gmail.com with the following information:
Name of your organization
Number of people from your organization you expect to attend with their names and contact information
Whether or not you plan to attend for the full-day or just part of the day. Be sure to indicate whether or not each attendant will be present for lunch.
A more detailed agenda and the pre-assessment survey will be sent out over the next few weeks.
If you have any questions about the forum or Together NC, please contact Rob Thompson (rob@nccovenant.org or 919.866.3280) or Meg Wiehe (meg@ncjustice.org or 919.856.3192).
Directions to Marbles Kids Museum: http://www.marbleskidsmuseum.org/directions
For more information on Together NC: http://www.togethernc.org/
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